Stay Report: Mercure Istanbul Sirkeci (Istanbul, Turkey - February 2023)

 Stay Report: Mercure Istanbul Sirkeci
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We were traveling on Turkish Airlines and were stopping over in Istanbul.  We had booked the program through the airlines’ “Istanbul Stopover” but the hotel the airline provided was right next to the airport and we were looking for a hotel within Sultanahmet so I looked for a hotel on my own.  In my search, I found a couple of hotels both within the Sultanahmet area as well as across the bridge in Galata.  I read reviews on all the hotels and decided on the Mercure Istanbul Sirkeci as it was a close walking distance to the tram stop, 2-stops away from the Hagia Sophia, as well as walking distance to many shops and restaurants.                                                                                                                                                                                          I have stayed at other Accor hotel properties (Novotel and ibis) but never at Mercure so I was not sure what to expect.  Accor hotels usually have average rooms, good wifi, average breakfast, and sometimes a good location and this is what the reviews said and this is what I found during my stay.  Some of the good aspects are the location as the hotel is central or within walking distance to many aspects including the tram stop, the wifi is free and fast, and hotel was responsive and communicative prior to arrival.  Some of the aspects which were alright or could use work were the size and quality of the rooms and the communication of the staff during the stay.

 
Through the hotel we had arranged transportation to and from the airport, and this can be done at an additional cost, but it was very convenient and the hotel was responsive throughout the entire process.  The hotel is located in the middle of Sirkeci, which is a neighborhood near Sultanahmet and is 2 tram stops away from Hagia Sophia and walking distance to many shops and restaurants.  In fact, the car parks on the side of the hotel as the main entrance is in a pedestrian walk-way with restaurants and a barber in front.  You enter the hotel in the lobby with the staircase in the middle, some seating to the right, and to the left are additional seating, the check-in desk, as well as the hotel’s restaurant.  The size, structure, and decoration of the hotel made it feel more like a boutique hotel rather than a chain and that is something I appreciated.  As we were checking in, another staff member was helping to bring in our suitcase and the hotel was able to hold luggage throughout the stay.  After check-in, we received our key and took the elevator to our room.  There are two elevators to get up – one is a smaller elevator located next to the check-in desk and the other is a bigger elevator located in the middle of the staircase – the circular staircase wraps around the elevator.  Both elevators are tiny – the one next to the check-in desk can barely fit 2 people – and I never saw anyone use the elevator in the middle of the staircase; in fact we were directed to the smaller elevator so not even sure if the bigger elevator works. 

Our room was located at the end of the hall on the 2^nd floor; given the tight space, each floor only had about 16 rooms with about 8 on each side.  Our room was part of what Accor calls the ‘family room’ in that there are two separate rooms with two separate entrances but there is a main door that leads to the hallway that can be closed so that both rooms can act as one or it can be opened so that both rooms can be utilized individually.  In the room, along the right side of the room was a full-length mirror, a long desk which you could sit and work or use as storage, and a section which contained the fridge, mini-bar and coffee details below and a place to store your luggage above.  At the end of the right-hand wall, between the desk and the window, was the closet which contained hangers and a place to hang your clothes, a safe, a luggage rack, as well as amenities such as shoe polish and disposable slippers.  Along the left of the room were two twin beds with a nightstand in the middle, a chair and a table alongside the window.  Next to both beds were charging ports and a plug and above the beds was a ledge which we used to store the phones and other devices that were charging on the ports.  The desk also contained plugs and charging ports so it was very convenient and easy to charge your electronics in the room. The beds itself were decent and contained a nice duvet which provided a nice sleep.  Overall, the room was a decent size and provided enough amenities and storage space to comfortably stay.  The same cannot be said for the bathroom.
 
As I said, I have stayed at Accor hotels before and now that rooms and bathrooms can be tiny but did 

not expect this in Istanbul.  The bathroom contained a small sink with a toilet right behind it and a stand-up shower right behind that.  The space was so tiny that 1) only one person could fit at the same time, 2) you could barely sit and use the toilet without your knees hitting either the shower or the sink, and you could only open the shower door from inside because opening outwardly you hit the toilet.  The shower was nice and contained both a hand-held and rain shower, but because of how tight everything was, you needed to be careful about when you turned on the shower otherwise the water would go everywhere.  Toiletries included refillable bottles of shampoo and body wash in the shower and refillable bottle of soap next to the sink.  The hotel also provided a dental kit, a comb, and other such amenities in the bathroom.  The toiletries and additional amenities were nice and the bathroom had the basic facilities, just the small and confined space of the bathroom was the issue.
 
The Mercure is a full-service hotel so additional services available at the hotel included a hotel restaurant, a gym, laundry service, as well as transportation.  As I mentioned earlier, the transportation service was an extra charge and was easily prebooked.  The gym was complimentary but given my short-stay I did not get a chance to experience it.  The restaurant did include breakfast and while this is not complimentary, it can be added on either through booking or when you check-in.  I have had breakfast at other Accor properties and they are generally similar in that they are decent but not overly expansive with a plethora of options.  The breakfast at the hotel was good in that there was a variety of cheeses, breads, and hot and cold dishes as well as some extras included egg station, coffee maker, and a variety of juices.  It was a nice breakfast and one that left you feeling full, not stuffed, but full and ready to explore the city.
 
Communication and staff support at a hotel is key.  The hotel was very communicative regarding 

booking my transportation prior to my arrival, and were willing to hold luggage during my stay; however, I did have some other communication issues with the staff during the stay.  I had a late flight out of Istanbul so during booking, ahead of arrival, during check-in, and throughout each day I had requested a late check-out, later than what is normally allowed.  I mentioned if there is a charge associated with this, let me know and I would pay it to allow access to the room – every day I was told to wait until my check-out date and when that day came, I was told that the late, late check-out request would not be honored and only the extended late check-out that everyone was getting would be honored.  It was poor communication and poor service and this is something that needs to be worked out.

Overall, it was a nice stay at the Mercure Istanbul Sirkeci.  The location is the best thing about the hotel as you are a 30-second walk to tram stops, shops, restaurants, and banks.  With the tram, you can go to the Hagia Sophia in 2 stops or across the bridge in 2 stops so the location is convenient. The negatives about the hotel are the small bathroom size and lack of information from the hotel staff.  Other than that, a centrally-located stay in Istanbul.

Trip Report: Pegasus Airlines, Zurich to Istanbul SAW (November 2021)

 Trip Report: Pegasus Airlines, Zurich to Istanbul (SAW)
comment below and let me know your thoughts :)

I needed to fly from Switzerland to Istanbul and the options I found were either Turkish or Pegasus.  I have flown on Turkish many times (in both Business and Economy) and will probably fly them again in the future but have never experienced Pegasus so decided to try them out.  Pegasus is a low-cost airline based out of Istanbul's second airport - Sabiha Gokcen Airport.  Being low-cost means that they offer a lower fare for the flight but that nothing is included except for your seat and a personal carry-on.  Additional hand luggage, checked baggage, meals, picking your seat - all of that comes at an extra cost.  I was not looking forward to the low-cost experience, but it was a direct flight from Zurich, the departure and return timings were good, and the flight was about 2.5hrs long.  This plus there was a significant price difference between Pegasus and Turkish.

It was really easy to go through and book my ticket online and manage my trip through the app - I did

want to say that my Western credit card did think that Pegasus was potentially fraud so that was the only hiccup in the booking process.  Since I was only going for a short period, I did not need to add any extras to my ticket so I did not purchase the extra hand-carry or the checked baggage; there are packages which provide everything including checked baggage and seat selection and I have chosen these on other low-cost carriers but did not need to on this journey.  

I was able to check-in 24-hours prior to my flight but need to check-in at the desk again to show my health documents, check my documents, and obtain my boarding pass.  During check-in I was assigned a seat and I was assigned an aisle seat which was fine with me; had I been assigned a middle seat I probably could have switched it at the airport.  Documents checked and after security I proceeded to the gate.  The plane arrived from Istanbul, deplaned, was 'cleaned' and then we started our boarding process.  The flight was schedule to depart Zurich at 11:45a and arrive into Istanbul at 4:35pm.  The flight boarded a little behind schedule but quickly everyone got to their seats and we pushed back.  Turkish airlines have always had a 'flexible on-time' departure and Pegasus was no different; it was what I have come to expect so if we depart close to the scheduled departure time then I considered it on-time. 

The operating plane was an Airbus A320 on the outbound and a Boeing 737 on the return, both with a 3-3 seat configuration.  I did not see a business class section so I am assuming that its an all economy class configuration.  The seats were basic like a low-cost carrier with a section for magazines/safety card, menu, tray table, and a small pocket below that.  The Airbus was definitely more comfortable than the Boeing with the seats being more comfortable and the legroom a bit better; although it is low-cost so do not expect much.  There is no seatback entertainment but you could stream certain movies and TV shows through your personal device; the free content was extremely limited but you could pay to access more shows.  The only thing with using your own device is that I did not see any power outlets nor USB ports to recharge your device so make sure it is fully charged prior to boarding. Once airborne, the inflight service commenced.  As with all low-cost airlines, nothing is free and everything is buy-on-board.  A lot of passengers were buying onboard or had prepurchased meals and so it looked very popular.  The inflight purchase happened twice, once as soon as we took off and again prior to landing.  

Overall, it was a standard low-cost flight experience with Pegasus.  Given the short flight time, the fact

I was only going for a little while, and it was a direct flight I did not mind the flight.  Had the flight time been longer, my stay in Turkey longer and I needed to add more services, or I needed to transit in Istanbul then Pegasus would not be my first choice.  With low-cost airlines, you have to know what you are getting into and choose them for what they do best.  In my opinion, they are good for short-haul basic flights at a low cost and that is what Pegasus delivered.

Stay Report: Novotel Istanbul Bosphorus (Istanbul, Turkey - November 2021)

 Stay Report: Novotel Istanbul Bosphorus
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I was meeting people in Istanbul and needed a hotel close to them.  They were staying in the Karakoy district of Istanbul so when I looked for nearby hotels I found the Novotel.  Novotels are part of Accorhotels and they are described as more upscale than ibis but less upscale than Sofitel.  I have stayed in Novotel before and thought it was a decent stay so decided to book the hotel again.  

The hotel is located in the back part of an entertainment section in this neighborhood where there are clubs and restaurants.  The back of the hotel faces this area while the front faces the river; there is still a lot of construction and renovations being done around the hotel so there are not a lot of services near the hotel.  The hotel is a 3-minute walk to the main street and from there you can access the tram, taxis, as well as walk another 5-7 minutes for more restaurants and services. 

As you enter the hotel, you pass the elevators to go towards the check-in desks on the right-side.  There are only two check-in desks and that was not sufficient for the size nor amount of people checking-in; it was a bit chaotic and there was a long wait depending on what time you checked in.  Further into the hotel is the bar and restaurant and on the left side is the small 'business' area with computer and printers (although the printer did not work for me so I had to send it to the front desk to print out - which a lot of people seemed to do).  I checked in, received my key and proceeded to my room.

The room was spacious and had all the amenities of a nice hotel.  You entered into the a hallway on

which the right-side of the hallway are closets that run along the hallway.  The closest consists both of a standard closet next to another closet with shelves; the closets provided a lot of storage places.  On the other side of the hallway was the bathroom which had the sink in the middle, the toilet on one side and the shower on the other (the shower had a window to the room and I do not know why so many hotels are doing this?!!).  As part of being a full-service hotel, the bathroom did have nice amenities including fair-trade products such as soap, shower gel, shampoo, and other products.  Additional bathroom amenities included very big and nice towels, which were good quality and very large towels. 

At the end of the hallway was the main section of the room which had two beds with nightstands on either side as well as reading lights.  The beds were bigger than a twin but definitely smaller than a full  so were both bit small in terms of length and width but they were comfortable enough and provided a comfortable sleep; the duvet on top was also comfortable as well.  Between the bed and the long window was a chair and a couch which was nice to sit and enjoy the view; in front of the bed was a desk to work on and a TV mounted on the wall.  In the bedroom section but connected to the closets was a section for the coffee maker, a fridge, and a safe in the room.  These were in the nook in the closets and provided a nice touch.

As a full-service hotel, there were many amenities that were provided. The hotel contains a bar, a restaurant, a pool, a fitness center,  a spa, free wifi, laundry services, room service, and a barber shop.  Most of these amenities were located on the basement level - I went during COVID so not all amenities were available.  The amenities I used were the free wifi, which was average and decent; and in the time of COVID a PCR test I booked through the hotel.  I needed a PCR test for arrival into my next country so I emailed the hotel and booked a PCR test through the hotel; if I had one in the morning I would have the results by the evening so I booked it for late morning.  The hotel got the timing wrong and I only found this out the night before when I went to confirm my appointment which turned out to be early morning and not late morning; all went well and I got my test done and the emailed the results to the front desk to print out (as the main printer was not working).  

In the end, it was an average stay at the Novotel.  The full service amenities provided by the hotel were nice, the location of the hotel was decent but this did not compensate for the poor customer service.  The hotel provided poor to minimal customer service.  The Novotel provides full service amenities, but not the full service customer service.

Trip Report: Turkish Airlines, Business Class - Houston to Lahore via Istanbul (February/April 2019)

Trip Report: Turkish Airlines - Business Class
Houston to Lahore via Istanbul
comment below and let me know your thoughts :)

I was flying from America to South Asia and for this trip there are many options – Emirates, Qatar, or Turkish.  My last couple of trips have been in business class and, since it is a long flight, I wanted to travel again in business class.  I have flown on Emirates business and really enjoyed both the lounge and in the air-experience, especially on the Airbus A380 (see review here), but in my last couple of flights with Emirates the service seemed to have dwindled a bit so this time I was looking to try other services.  I have flown Turkish many times, mostly in economy and once in business class – the business class was decent with lots of food and lie-flat beds, however it wasn’t the best product out there but good value for what you pay for.  When I was searching for this flight, Turkish kept coming up in terms of best product, best flight times, and overall better price for the service so I went ahead and booked Turkish Airlines Business Class. 

My first sector was on Turkish’s Boeing 777-300ER from Houston to Istanbul.  Turkish does provide complimentary pickup and dropoff to Business and First Class passengers within 30 miles of the airport – it’s a nice service that some of the competitors only offer at their home base.  Through Turkish’s updated website and app, I was easily able to manage my flight, my seat selection, meal preferences, as well as select my complimentary pickup.  Turkish leaves Houston at 8:55pm and that is a nice time as it is later than its competitors so there is not a lot of rush at the airport.  We got to the airport well ahead of schedule and went to the business class line were our bags were checked to the final destination.  After security we went to the lounge – Turkish does not have its own lounge but its passengers have access to their Star Alliance partner United’s Polaris lounge in Concourse D.  The lounge has recently been updated to the Polaris look and it is a THOUSAND times better than what is before – before the lounge was very sad and just looked like an upgraded waiting area, but now the lounge actually looks like a lounge with improvements to the seating, the overall look, the service, and the food.  It was really nice to spend time in the lounge, but the only problem is that United does not have flight times for any of their Star Alliance partner flights so it is up to the passenger to monitor their time and ensure they leave the lounge in time for their flight.  We left the lounge and made our way to the gate to board the plane.  Even though we were supposed to board around 8:15pm, Turkish always seems to have a flexible on-time schedule.  No flight I have ever taken with Turkish has ever left on time and this was the case with these flights. 

Boarding finally started and Business Class boarded in a separate line and through a separate entrance into the plane.  The plane was configured in a 2-3-2 layout which isn’t ideal especially if you are stuck in the middle seat for over 12+hours.  I was able to preselect my seat and I had chosen a window and an aisle seat.  The seat itself was very long but it was a bit narrow, especially if you were a bigger person.  On one side was the seat and on the other side was a console with a huge TV screen on top and a footrest on the bottom.  The footrest could be opened to allow storage during the flight (I appreciated this because some other airlines do not have this feature and it makes it inconvenient to constantly get up to get things from the upper storage).  The airline magazines as well as a shoe storage were also located in this console.  The seat itself was nice and comfortable, although as I said a bit narrow.  The seat was upright and could be maneuvered to be completely lie-flat.  The seat had a reading light, and adjustable footrests as well as other adjustable parts (however – this all depended on all the controls working on every seat, which not all did).  There was a massage function as well on the seats, but again not all the functions worked for every seat.  Below the armrest in a dark cubby hole was the plug-in for the headphones as well as a USB port.  While these amenities were very nice, it was very difficult to access given the narrowness of the seat, and it all got tangled when you lay the seat flat.  This cubby hole is also were the remote was for the PTV – the PTV was touchscreen but because it was so far away the remote was needed; however, again the functions of the remote sometimes worked and sometimes it was just easier and quicker to move to the touchscreen on the TV.  I have said this in other reviews and while traveling in economy, and it remained the same in business class – Turkish’s onboard entertainment has a decent selection of movies and TV shows but they are only enough to pass about 5 hours of flight time; if your flight is longer than that I would suggest downloading movies on your personal device.  The same was for this flight as the entertainment selection was decent for about 5 hours of viewing time, and then you had to improvise (in this category, no one can beat Emirates’ selection).

Before take-off, pre-drinks were served, newspapers were offered, noise-cancelling headphones were distributed (again, some headphones worked better than others), and amenity kits were also distributed.  While the amenity kits were nice, they looked more like a premium economy kit rather than a business class kit as the kits contained socks, eyeshades, toothbrush, toothpaste, earplugs, a small lip balm and small lotion.  I have received the same kit – in a less fancier package and without the lip balm and lotion – in economy class on other airlines.  I have also flown business class on other airlines – namely Emirates – where the business class amenity kit includes much more such as razors, shaving cream, and cologne.  Menus were also distributed prior to takeoff and this is one area where Turkish excels over its competitors.  Both the quality and quantity of food was very good and it was an extensive menu of offerings that the passenger gets to choose from. 

Once airborne, the inflight service started a hot towel service and then with drinks and nuts.  The tray table is in the middle console which is shared between the two seats but the positioning of the tray table makes the narrow seat feel even more narrow, especially for those who are larger.  Also, the tray table is supposed to move diagonally to let the passenger out of the seat but again some of these worked better than others.  The tray table was set with linens, a fake candle, and really interesting salt and pepper shakers.  After the nuts, the first course of appetizers were served, followed by another starter, then your selection of the main dish, then dessert, then cheese and fruit, and then coffee or tea.  Again, it was a lot of food and it took about 2.5 hours for the entire course of meals to be presented and consumed.  As I said, both the quality and quantity of food were good.  Once the meal service finished, the attendants came by to make up the bed.  The pillow was already on the seat, and it was an average size pillow.  The mattress padding was fitted onto the seat, and that was a bit thin in quality but the blanket provided was nice and of good thick quality.  You really felt the narrowness of the seat when you slept, as there was not a lot of room to move in the seat, although the seat did lie completely flat so that was nice. 

Turkish only provides two meal services – one after takeoff and then one right before landing.  In between, if you are hungry there are small snacks, fruit, crackers, and nuts available in the galley.  While these snacks are nice, they are definitely not filling if you decided to skip the meal and get hungry in the middle of the flight (I also do not believe Turkish has a ‘dine on demand’ product available); again comparing it to some of its competitors, Emirates does at least provide some more substantial snacks that are available in between the meal service upon request.  About an hour prior to landing, the lights came on and the tray tables were set for the second meal.  Again, there was a selection of breakfast items to choose from as well as some appetizers.  This meal selection was substantial but smaller than the first meal selection (both were definitely filling though).  The cabin was then readied for landing and we landed in Istanbul. 

On my outbound flight I transferred at the old Istanbul airport while on my return I transferred through the new airport.  I did have family members who were affected by the transfer from one airport to the other, and the communication and coordination between Turkish Airlines and its customers during that time was very poor.  Luckily I had booked through a travel agent and they were coordinating and rebooking everything, and he said that the information kept changing minute by minute as he had many customers who were being affected by the transfer and cancellation of flights.  I transferred to the new airport about 2 weeks after it opened, and it was still a mess.  Long walks, not helpful ground staff (although Turkish has never been known for helpful ground staff), still under construction security areas, many confused ground staff, and a lot of teething issues.  While waiting in the lounge for my flight, the gate for the flight changed, and I am not kidding, 5 times in a span of 1 hour.

While there was one HUGE business class lounge in the old airport, the new airport has multiple business class lounges and both are identical in terms of the offerings and look – this makes it very confusing if you are meeting someone at the business class lounge because the only difference between the two is the location.  The lounges are nice with good offering of food, drink, and spaces.  There are free massages available but those are only on a first-come, first-serve basis and the wait time for the massage was over 2 hours.    

My onward flight was on an Airbus A330-200.  On the outbound the plane was very old and so was on the onboard product while on the return both the plane and the product had been updated.  The service and onboard system was the same for both flights – the seat was similar to that of the Boeing 777 as it did lie flat, the space was narrow, and the same features were available on both seats.  Same amenity kits as well as same headphones were distributed along with menus.  The main difference for this flight is that only one meal service was offered, right after take-off, and the meal quality and quantity was smaller – it was more of a heavy snack/light meal rather than a full meal – and this was the only service offered during the entire flight.  This was another difference between Turkish and its competitors as other airlines, I believe, would have either offered a more substantial meal if they were doing one meal or would have offered two light meals.

Overall, the experience with Turkish Airlines in Business Class felt more like Premium Economy rather than a true Business Class.  The lie-flat seats, the access to the lounge, and the substantial food offered on the long-haul flights are characteristics of Business Class, but the quality of the seats, the narrowness of the seats, and the overall feel and experience of the on-board product made it feel more like Premium Economy.  The negative about this is that Turkish does not offer First Class, so the choice is between Economy or Business so if you are only offering one premium class, wouldn’t you make it more outstanding instead of having minor differences between the two?  In Turkish’s defense though, the price for Turkish was lower than its competitors so if you are paying less then I guess you would expect less as well.  If you are looking for an overall business experience, then Turkish is not the choice for you, but if all you are looking for is a lie-flat seat, good food, and a nice lounge then Turkish is your airline.

Trip Report: Turkish Airlines - Dublin to Athens via Istanbul (July 2017)

Trip Report: Turkish Airlines - Dublin to Athens via Istanbul

         comment below and let me know your thoughts :)

I was flying from Dublin to Athens and decided to fly with Turkish Airlines for 2 reasons: 1) it was an economical price and 2) I was meeting a friend in Istanbul as we were both flying to Athens together.  I have previously flown with Turkish Airlines and my previous experience was alright; it was not great but it was not bad that I wanted to avoid the airline. 

In trying to book the flight, I previous have had issues with the airline’s website.  While the website does provide good deals and options pre-booking and during booking, it is not good post booking or managing your flight.  For these various reasons, I had purchased my ticket through a travel agency and received the airline reservation code.  Using that code, I had to call the reservation system to request seat assignments, special meal requests, and adding of my frequent flyer number (note: if you book too far in advance, the airplane has not been confirmed for your flight so you may not able to book your seat).  I was able to check-in online and receive my boarding pass, which made the airport experience easier as the airline has a separate ‘online check-in’ line. 

My first flight was from Dublin to Athens.  The scheduled flight time is 4h30min and the flight is   The plane was scheduled to depart at 10:50a and arrive Istanbul at 5:10p.  I arrived at the gate around 9:30a but the gate was empty; the flight arrives from Istanbul at 10:10a and the crew have 40 minutes to deplane, clean, and reload passengers for the return flight.  In my experience, Turkish has not been the most efficient airline so I was not expecting an on-time departure (also, according to the boarding pass we were supposed to board the aircraft at 10:10a).  The crew did a good job of turning the aircraft around, but we did board late.  

The operating aircraft was a Boeing 737 with a 3-3 seat layout in economy, and a 2-2 seat layout in business.  The interior looked updated and the color scheme of Turkish with black and red seats are very nice.  Each seat had a pillow as well as a headphones on the seat, and each seat had a PTV with a USB port and headphone jack.  Beneath the PTV was space which held the safety card, the airline magazine, and the sickness bag.  Below that was the tray table, the remote for the PTV, and then another pocket for your personal belongings.  There were a lot of amenities on the seat, but the location of the tray table and the remote was problematic, especially for a tall person like myself, as your knees keep hitting the tray table.  The position of the tray table also cut into the seat pitch, which was already narrow to start with; there was definitely not a lot of leg room.  The seat comfort was average, it wasn’t bad during the beginning of the flight but towards to the end you did start feeling the somewhat lack of cushion.

Once everyone was on board, the doors closed, the safety video was shown, and we took off for   Turkish is a full-service airline, which means that complimentary luggage is provided as well as complimentary meal and drinks.  The meal service start a bit later than normal, and regular meals as well as special request meals were served at the same time.  Along with meals, complimentary drinks were provided.  Turkish has advertised ‘chef on board’ for the business class and has promoted their airline meals, and while the meal wasn’t great it was definitely better and more substantial than I have had on other airlines.  After the meal service, tea and coffee were served before the meal trays were cleared.  For the remaining flight, passengers were able to pass the time with the PTV which had a decent selection of movies and television shows.  In my previous experience, which was on a long-haul flight, the PTV selection was good for short-haul flights but there was not enough content for the long-haul flights; it was the same experience now.  The selection was good and decent for the short-haul, but was a bit limited for the long-haul flight. 

Istanbul.

We started out decent into Istanbul, and after a long time of roaming around the airport and waiting   Each time I have transferred through Istanbul, it has been very crowded and very long – there are long walks between gates and when transferring from one gate to another.  Additionally you have to go through security even when transferring as well as go through a boarding pass check.  Given the immense crowds, seating space is a commodity especially since the gates are only announced about 1.5 hour prior to the flight; the airport capacity has not kept up with the growth of the airline. 

I made my way to the gate for my next flight, and when I got there I saw a very big plane for a short flight.  My next flight was from Athens to Istanbul and the operating aircraft was a Boeing 777-300ER, which is a very big aircraft for a flight time of 1h30min.  We were scheduled to depart at 7:15p and arrive Athens at 8:45p which meant we were scheduled to board at 6:15p.  Boarding started late and, due to the size of the plane and the number of passengers, boarding took a while so we were delayed in our departure.  The boarding doors finally closed, the safety video was shown, and we departed for Athens.

The plane is laid out in a 3-3-3 seat layout.  I have previously flown this aircraft with Turkish on a long-haul flight and during that time, the seat pitch was very tight given the long flight duration.  Given that, for this flight I requested a bulkhead seat which had lots of legroom.  The seat itself was comfortable, especially because it was a very short flight.  Usually the seats contain a pillow and headphones, but those were not available during this flight (again, I am assuming due to the short flight time).  Each seat did have its own PTV which had a variety of TV shows and movies; however, the selection was limited as there weren’t as many options as my previous flight.  Each seat also contained a seat pocket which contained the airlines magazine, duty free magazine, safety card, and an air sickness bag.  As I was in a bulkhead seat, the PTV did not have USB ports but rather underneath the seat, next to the holder for the PTV screens, there were USB ports and a universal plug. 

Once we passed 10,000ft, the inflight service started.  Turkish is a full-airline which means they  I knew this, but given the short flight distance I did not expect much.  The attendants came around and handed out cheese sandwiches and offered a choice of beverage.  The service was quick and rushed, I think the attendants themselves were overwhelmed in providing the service to the large number of passengers in the short flight time.  Once the service was done, and the trash collected, most passengers watched the inflight entertainment until it was time to land.  We landed in Athens a little after the scheduled arrival time, taxied to the gate, and deplaned.

provide complimentary meals and drinks of each flight.

My return flight was also operated by Turkish and the experience was very similar (including the chaotic transfer in Istanbul).  Overall, the experience with Turkish Airlines was decent; I neither had a positive nor negative experience on Turkish.  They provided a decent onboard product, with nice amenities such as USB ports and PTVS as well as complimentary meals and drinks, but nothing was outstanding.  The seat pitch on the Boeing 737 was a bit tight (even for the 4+hr flight time) and the chaotic transfer in Istanbul (on both the outbound and return) was not enjoyable.  Given all this, would I fly Turkish again?  They usually have good promotions going which makes the costs more affordable, so given that I would fly them again but mostly for short-haul; I think other airlines provide a better and more comprehensive long-haul service.

A Trip Report: Turkish Airlines, Houston to Zurich via Istanbul (May 2015)

                    A Trip Report: Turkish Airlines (May 2015)
                              comment below and let me know your thoughts :)

In the last couple of years, Turkish Airlines has been winning a lot of awards for their service and product.  They seem to be doing this while still providing a competitive rate, so I was curious to experience the service myself.  After flying both Business as well as Economy class, I am not sure why the airline won all the awards -- while the product is decent and I have definitely experienced worst, I have also experienced better.

I was flying from the U.S. to Switzerland and Turkish Airlines was providing a very good deal from Houston to Zurich via Istanbul.  For another family member, we had previously booked a Turkish Airlines flight through a travel agent and it was difficult to manage the booking on the Turkish Airlines website, so this time we decided to book directly through Turkish Airlines website.  The website does provide good deals and options pre-booking and during booking, but it is not good post booking or managing the booking.  Seat assignments, for example must be confirmed by calling the airline - however if you book too far in advance than the airplane has not been confirmed for your flight so you are not able to book your seat.  There were other instances like this which does not make the site very user-friendly (as opposed to Qatar and other airlines which are more user-friendly).  

Another thing that you cannot do from this site - and I found this with other Star Alliance partners such as Ethiopian - is that they do not provide connections with Star Alliance partners such as United.  If wanted to book a United flight connecting to a Turkish flight, I am not able to do that on Turkish.  I would either have to book separate tickets or use a third party (the same thing for Ethiopian flights).  If you are in an Alliance, shouldn't you be able to book one ticket on multiple partners?  Oneworld and Skyteam do not seem to have this issue as you can book multiple partners through each site.

I got to experience both Business as well as Economy class on Turkish.  My original ticket was in Economy class but you are able to upgrade to Business Class at the counter, if space is available.  NOTE: if you are travelling on more than one sector, the upgrade is only valid on the first sector.  We were travelling from Houston to Istanbul and then from Istanbul to Zurich so the upgrade was only applicable from Houston to Istanbul.  In Houston, Turkish partners with Star Alliance member so you have access to the United Club; in Istanbul we would be back to economy so would not have access to the lounge.  Given all this, is it worth to upgrade?  That really depends on what you value.

We were flying on a Boeing 777 and the Business class is laid out in a 2-2-2 section.  The positive is that the seats do turn into completely lie-flat beds and there is a massage button to help ease the long flight.  They also do feed you a lot in Business class, with many courses and their advertised ‘Chef on Board’.  The food was good, not great, but good and they did provide a lot of it.  One thing to note was that the flight attendants never explained what any of the dishes were and, when asked, could not provide the answer as to what was being served.  Every time I asked for an explanation of the dish they had to run back to the galley to get the answer.   That was a negative in my opinion.  Other negatives were that the service in Business wasn't that good, there is very little privacy between you and your seatmate, and the beds are not that comfortable.  Additionally, the amenity kit in Business is the same one that was received in Economy.  Finally, the IFE is wider in Business class but they have less selection (overall the selection wasn’t that good, but it was worse in Business Class).  Given we were fed well and were able to rest, we did not feel as tired when we landed in Istanbul at 12 hours so in that aspect it was worth it, but given the lack of service and the other negatives we decided not to upgrade on the return flight (more about that later).

Just a note about the Club at IAH: Turkish does not have its own club so it partners with fellow Star Alliance member United and uses the United Club. The United Club is nice but the Club it is nowhere near the Turkish gate.  Turkish departs out of D gates and the closest Club location is in E gates – about a 15 minute fast walk or a 20 minute slow walk.  As it is a United Club, there are no announcements of the Turkish flight so you have to guess and estimate the time. 

We transferred in Istanbul to our flight to Zurich.  Istanbul airport is nice, but very crowded and very long – there are long walks between gates and when transferring from one gate to another.  Additionally you have to go through security even when transferring as well as go through a boarding pass check.  Given the immense crowds, seating space is a commodity especially since the gates are only announced about an 1.5 hour prior to the flight. 

The flight from Istanbul to Zurich was on an Airbus A320 with a 3-3 seat layout.  The seat pitch on the flight was very generous providing plenty of legroom.  There were no personal IFE and only the flight route was shown on the overhead screens.  The service on the plane was decent with a meal and drinks being provided; however given the 3.5 hour flight time some sort of entertainment - either personal or on the screen above) would have been better.

The return flight from Zurich to Istanbul was on the same type of aircraft and the service was the same (which was decent).  Transferring in Istanbul was a bit chaotic, especially for the flights to the U.S.  The plane was not parked at the gate so we had to take a bus to the plane.  It was a full flight with over 300+ passengers but the waiting area was so small and compact, with only 6 chairs and no food/beverage services.  Prior to the waiting area, you had to go through 3 security checkpoints so it was becoming very crowded, very quickly.  Given the crowded situation, Turkish opened the gate early and we were allowed to board earlier than scheduled.

The flight from Istanbul to Houston was operated by a Boeing 777 and this time we were in economy.  The seat pitch was extremely tight – there was barely any room to sit no matter what your height was.  The seats were also uncomfortable and so it made for a very uncomfortable 12+ hour flight.  The service included a meal upon takeoff, tea, distribution of amenity kit (which was the exact same one we received in Business Class on the departure trip) as well as a meal upon landing.  In addition, there were snacks and drinks available in the galley.  The service was decent, the only problem I had was that 30 minutes after take-off three bathrooms on one side of the plane ran out of soap.  I am not sure whether soap was not filled initially or too many people used it, but instead of refilling the soap or apologizing for that, the attendants’ response was ‘just use another one’.  It was this lackluster response that was indicative of their service throughout all the flights we took, and it was this lackluster response which did not make the flight enjoyable.  The seats did have a person IFE as well as USB port to charge your electronics.  The IFE in economy had a better selection of movies than business class, but the selection was not as up to date nor as vast as other airlines (including the US, Emirates, etc.).   The movie selection was enough to pass 12 hours but not enough to come back to the airline.

In the end, I neither had a positive nor negative experience on Turkish.  Everything was basic but there was not enough to make me want to repeat my travel with Turkish, and that is the sad point.  I have had experiences on other airlines that were decent but one thing stood out – either the service or the planes or the efficiency – which made me want to try them again, or not.  This was not the case with Turkish.  They keep stating they are winning all these awards, and after flying with them, I am trying to figure out why